I was looking forward to this week's matchups. I think most people would say I went 2-4 in my predictions for the week, but I have plenty of excuses as to why I missed on two of the four matchups. Everything from injuries to dropped passes are used to justify my misses. The Dez Bryant vs. Richard Sherman matchup didn't disappoint and I went in-depth breaking down the matchup that seemingly everyone watched.
Dez Bryant vs. Richard Sherman
My key points: In my matchup article I stated that I don’t think the Cowboys will test Richard Sherman with Dez Bryant. It looked as though that was going to be the case until cornerback Byron Maxwell got injured. Before the Maxwell injury Bryant and Sherman were locked up on only three (11%) pass plays.
While Bryant was not being shadowed by Sherman he had 25 receiving yards in about one quarter worth of playing time. Which means he was on pace to have about 100 yards receiving. Maxwell was injured after just 32 snaps and did not return. Instead of letting Bryant run crazy against bench-level cornerbacks, they decided to shadow Bryant with Sherman. Let’s take a look at how Bryant did while facing Sherman. Bryant had two catches for 39 yards on five targets while lined up against Sherman. The two faced off against each other on about 72% of their snaps.
So who won this battle? In terms of fantasy football Bryant owners have to be disappointed. 10 targets for 63 yards is not a good day for a receiver of Bryant’s ability. I have little doubt that if Maxwell didn’t get injured that Bryant would have had a much bigger game. Like him or not Sherman is still the best cornerback in football. I have watched every snap he has ever played and he has superior skills to every other cornerback in the league. He was matched up against Bryant for nearly three quarters and held him to two catches. Quarterback Tony Romo only targeted Bryant five times while he lined up against Sherman. When I hear things like, “Sherman has been exposed this year!” My first question is, “On which one of his 10 catches allowed did he get most exposed?”
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